Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-08-12

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Many people work long hours, leaving very little time for leisure activities.

Does this situation have more advantages or more disadvantages?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

 

Student answer (Band 6.0)

In a modern era, due to the busy schedules some individuals are not getting enough time for their passion or the activities which they can enjoy. While this situation comes with a lot of drawbacks on a person who is living this kind of life, its positive side can not be neglected.

Some people work overtime and ignore their personal life which affects them in many different ways. Firstly, they do not have work life balance, due to that they miss many crucial things in life. One good example of it is they are unable to spend a quality time with their family and friends, which is significant moment in any individual to live it. Moreover, if someone is working after hours, they should get tired and do not get enough time for fun activities. This could bring some negativity in someone's life. To elaborate this, working like a machine could be detrimental for well being and mental health. It could lead towards mental illness and increased stress which can be a huge threat to overall health.

On the other hand, we simply can not ignore the positive side of working overtime as it brings professional growth in someone's life. To illustrate this, to archive a higher success in life an individual has to make some sacrifices and work long hours to stay dedicated towards their goals.

Ultimately, working like a robot after hours gives you a power to archive everything in life. However, personal well being and social factors which leads to detriment can not be ignored that is why its cons outweigh to its pros.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses the prompt by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of working long hours, ultimately taking a clear position that the disadvantages outweigh the benefits. The ideas are relevant, such as the impact on mental health and the potential for professional growth. However, the development is somewhat limited. The arguments regarding professional growth are brief and could have been expanded with more specific examples or deeper analysis. While the position is clear throughout, the essay would benefit from more detailed exploration of the 'advantages' side to provide a more balanced and thorough discussion before concluding.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized into paragraphs, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Moreover', 'On the other hand', and 'Ultimately' are used to guide the reader through the argument. However, the use of these devices is sometimes a bit mechanical. The transition between the idea of professional growth and the conclusion is slightly abrupt. Additionally, some sentences, such as 'To elaborate this, working like a machine could be detrimental for well being and mental health', could be better linked to the previous point to improve the flow of ideas.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at using more sophisticated collocations like 'work life balance', 'detrimental for well being', and 'professional growth'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'archive a higher success' (should be 'achieve') and 'leads to detriment' (which is slightly awkward). The repetition of phrases like 'in someone's life' also limits the range. To reach a higher band, the student should focus on using more precise vocabulary and avoiding repetitive phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('a quality time', 'a huge threat'), verb forms ('should get tired' instead of 'get tired'), and preposition usage. Some sentences are slightly awkward, such as 'its cons outweigh to its pros'. While these errors do not impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. The student should focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles to improve the accuracy of their writing.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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